FORT MYER, Va. — During the Change of Command ceremony, March 10, 2013 at Fort Myer’s Conmy Hall, Soldiers of the 3rd Brigade (Professional Development), 104th Training Division (Leader Training) hailed a new commander and bid farewell to another. The Change of Command is a time honored tradition that symbolizes leadership transition of an organization through the passing of the colors from the outgoing to the incoming commanders.

Col. Andrew L. Nord replaced Col. Antonio L. Morales in an event hosted by Brig. Gen. Kurt A. Hardin, commanding general of the 104th Training Division (LT). The ceremony included a Color Guard of Old Guard Soldiers from Fort Myer and leadership with Colors from the brigade’s seven subordinate battalions. The Commander of Troops for this ceremony was Lt. Col. Julianne M. Kerr, executive officer, 3rd Brigade.

“This was a bitter and sweet moment for Morales and Nord,” said Hardin after passing the colors from commander to commander. “It is a bitter moment for Morales because every commander wants to hang on a little longer and it is sad to see the tenure coming to an end. For Nord it is a sweet moment because every officer in the Army strives to rise to command opportunities. Brigade command is a great opportunity to work with Soldiers at the operational level. Hardin added, “Morales has every right to be proud of his Soldiers and everything they have accomplished since assuming command in May 2010. He has molded a team second to none. We can rest assured the brigade remains in capable hands under Nord’s leadership.”

“I am extremely proud of the brigade Soldiers,” Morales stated after relinquishing command. The 3rd Brigade “Night Fighters” are charged with supporting and training the future officers in the U.S. Army. Morales highlighted that the brigade, consisting of approximately 995 Soldiers, accomplishes their mission by working with over 57 colleges and universities from Maine to Puerto Rico with two battalions dedicated to support the United States Army Military Academy at West Point. In addition, the brigade provides support to cadet training at Joint Base Lewis McCord, Wash. and Initial Entry Training (IET) at Fort Jackson, S.C. and Fort Benning, Ga. Morales stated that Nord was “a great choice to replace him based on his experience and reminded him that it was not about him but about the Soldiers standing before us.”

The 3rd Brigade under Morales’ tenure grew from three to seven battalions focused on supporting and training the next generation of officers in ROTC for the U.S. Army, the National Guard, and the U.S. Army Reserve. The 3rd Brigade is directly responsible for educating and training over 12,000 second lieutenants for commissioning and leadership roles in the ranks of the U.S. Army.

After assuming Command of 3rd Brigade, Nord stated that “one of the principles that makes our Army both unique and the best in the world is that each of us is prepared and expected to step up and take on higher levels of responsibility when we are called upon to do so. So I stand before you today humbly accepting this responsibility.”